October 18, 2015

Some readers may have noticed my football commentary was nonexistent last week. There were two reasons for this.

1. I had found myself becoming obsessive over the sport and it was ruining my enjoyment of the season. I therefore decided to take the week off and avoid sports news or conversations as much as possible.

2. Based on the lack of comments and traffic data, no one seems to find my sports posts interesting. This tells me that if I with to continue opining about sports, I should do it on a sports site.

Unless I get feedback to the contrary, I'm going to abstain from sports blogging for a while. I may still note events which I think are politically or culturally significant, but week-by-week analysis is time-consuming and if no one reads it, it's not worth the bother.

June 21, 2015

At no other point in history has so much cultural energy been expended to destroy and denigrate fatherhood.

Fathers are mocked in the popular culture, targeted by the legal system and increasingly rare in the sense of living with and parenting their offspring.

And yet, somehow, like a hardy plant coming up through the asphalt, it endures.

I believe it is because fatherhood is intrinsic to humanity. For more than a century the left has tried to build the New Man (or is that New Person?) and yet despite all their efforts, all they can do is make weak parodies of what they hate.

J.R.R. Tolkien spotted this decades ago. The evil spirit Melkor (a stand-in for Satan) coveted Creation but being subordinate to God, could not make anything of his own substance. So instead he perverted creation, mocking it and inadvertently revealing his own twisted soul in the horrors that resulted. In so doing he ceased being Melkor ("He Who Arises in Might") and became Morgoth ("Dark Foe of the World").

Angelic spirits who sided with him became demons and elves and men he captured were twisted into hideous orcs. The "ideal society" of Morgoth was in fact a vast slave camp and military machine, founded in cruelty that celebrated ugliness.

Though Tolkien despised allegory, he readily agreed his work was applicable. Modern society is increasingly Morgothian. Bruce Jenner can't become a woman, but he can assume the parody appearance of one. The power of the Dark Lord seems insurmountable and its victory is all but assured.

Yet just as in Middle Earth, there is another Power, beyond the reach of Morgoth and his minions. The Left has tried to bury it, lie about it and has killed millions in an effort to eradicate it, yet it cannot be destroyed.

It is true and it is also why the modern totalitarian version of feminism will also fail because it is entirely based on opposition to something else. It must define itself as anti-fatherhood, and anti-male.

In so doing, it carries the seeds of its own destruction. A movement that exists purely to fight and enemy is ultimately dependent on that enemy. George Orwell demonstrated this in "1984" but his real-life model was Joseph Stalin's Soviet empire, which created enemies when there were none to justify its repression.

Stalinism only worked in a climate of fear of something worse, so the Soviets had to constantly hunt down imagined enemies including the Old Guard, Kulaks, and Nationalities until the Nazis gave them an actual existential foe.

Fatherhood has no such need. Fatherhood just is. It stands in opposition to nothing but instead work in harmony with motherhood.

This Fathers Day, take a moment to give old Dad a call or remember him in your prayers. Right now things look pretty grim, but I'm reliably informed that we've been in worse places.

I'd rather weather a Twitter storm than be stuck in Siberia digging for gold with a stick.

December 25, 2014

Since I can remember, people have been lamenting the commercialization of Christmas. We are now to the point where the day after Halloween marks the beginning of the retail push. Similarly, some radio stations have moved to an all-Christmas music format starting before Thanksgiving.

For me this destroys the specialness of the holiday. The Twelve Days of Christmas now encompass two months of jingles, sales promotions and schlocky entertainment. It is just too much.

This year our family retrenched on Christmas. No external lights and minimal decorations. Like my co-blogger, gifts were also reduced - not so much due to economy but instead a desire to change what had become a commerical event back into a religious one.

I like to think that if enough people of good will do the same, retailers will back off making such an all-out push.

(It is ironic that one of the many voices raised against this trend was Dr. Seuss, whose "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" is now a major offender.)

November 27, 2014

I've been on the road quite a bit of late, which has cut into my ability to blog. My able co-blogger has taken up much of the slack, but as they say in Congress, "Had I been present, this is how I would have voted on the following matters:"

FERGUSON RIOTS: It is no accident that the modern left has taken over a lot of the mental real estate once occupied by the Protestant Right - the sinfulness of man, the need to repent and desire to build a perfect community of the Elect. The problem with acknowledging Original Sin is that one also need a Savior, and when this is done in a secular context, you either get a series of increasingly dictatorial would-be messiahs or a constant state of revolution as the Elect struggle to bring about paradise on earth.

The United States is blessed insofar that our leftish worshippers are half-assed and generally ineffective. They have not yet achieved full control of either the state or society, though they have created a lot of mischief. Like Detroit, Ferguson will stand as yet another monument to their eternal struggle to purge white guilt and pursue social justice. Having done the damage and shattered lives and neighborhoods, they will move on the next project, utterly free of any sense of responsibility. This is who they are and this what they do.

AMNESTY FOR LAWBREAKERS, PUNISHMENT FOR LAW-ABIDING: This isn't the first blog to notice the inherent contradiction in pushing for both a minimum wage and the addition of unlimited numbers of unskilled laborers. Still, it tends to be an argument in the abstract that uses charts and tables. A growing number of people who might have been sympathetic are now going to find out how much fun it is to watch the left's favor shift from one group to another.

Black Americans are just beginning to understand that their monolithic devotion to the Democrats has gotten them nothing but broken families, shattered cities and now - replacement by the New Hot Young Think.

Like the battered first wife, they will not take it well. I suspect some of the Ferguson antics were in part a realization that they were betrayed by someone they thought was one of their own.

HOPE FOR THE AMERICAN MILITARY: The fundamental contradiction at the heart of American military strategy is now in the open.

We cannot continue to downsize our military, discard its weapon systems and cut back on training while maintaining the same commitments at home and abroad. The reduced blanket isn't big enough to cover the entire bed. Obama doesn't much care, but the American people don't like watching their nation being humiliated overseas. Even Democrats find it unpleasant.

The new Republican majority in Congress seems commited to lifting the limits on our military, which is appropriate. I do wish the deficit hawks would either put up or shut up for good. Either reign in entitlement spending - which sucks up the vast majority of the budget, or drop the whole issue entirely. Surrendering naval and aerial supremecy will not balance our finances, but it will make us very vulnerable to overseas aggressors. If they want savings, cut out the IRS travel budget and defund all the mini-armies hidden in the various deparments.

At this point, I'm fully prepared for us to default on our debt. It happens in South American all the time. Germany did it as well. None of them disappeared. Like the gambler who can't leave the roulette table, at some point the only way to change the behavior is to let the full consequences take effect. Americans want low taxes and high spending. For a generation we thought this could go on forever. It can't, so let's see what happens.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL ROUNDUP: Okay, so my Black Swan prediction didn't come to pass. Well, that's why they call it a Black Swan - it was a long shot. Still, Ohio State hasn't looked all the great since their big win in East Lansing.

The current buzz is over how badly they will thump the Skunk Bears in the Horseshoe this Saturday.

A part of me actually wants the Wolverines to win. After all, it would screw up the title picture, perhaps give Brady Hoke another season and at the very least extend his job uncertainty until after the bowl game. I know, the Cult of Bo has been twisting in the wind for more than a year, but I'm still not tired of watching it. Like watching Notre Dame lose, it never gets old.

All that being said, I just don't think the Skunk Bears have it in them to pull off the upset. This is a beaten team, far less capable than the one that took the field last year. The 2013 team had some offensive firepower, putting up big points against Indiana and at times looking like it might amount to something - until the Spartans exposed them.

This team has struggled against even middling opponents, and is now the only Big Ten team besides Indiana to lose to both Maryland and Rutgers. I want the upset to happen, but it won't.

BONUS SKUNK BEAR ABUSE: The Blue-Ade drinkers in Ann Arbor really screwed themselves. Through their singular stupidity, they find themselves without either a permanent athletic director or a viable head coach.

Given the cult-like nature of their football program (and the fact that the previous two athletic directors were forced out by poor football coach hires), it is going to be hard for them to find a good candidate who doesn't get to choose the next coach. After all, the job hinges on it. No one worth having will take a job that has them captive to someone else's decision.

At the same time, Brady Hoke is a dead man walking and everyone knows it. The recruits are bailing out and the transfers are reconsidering. Active players on their roster are probably thinking of going as well. The longer they wait to replace Hoke, the worse the damage will be. Should they decide to keep him for another year, the team will unquestionably stink and the hoped-for revival will be pushed back a year and have to start in an even deeper hole.

Ann Arbor has money, facilities and name recognition, but it also has an unreasonable fan base and dysfunctional culture. There are open positions in Kansas and Florida that are in many ways more attractive. It is hard to see how they turn things around.

SPARTANS STILL WINNING: My time away from the blog gave me a little perspective. Yes, the OSU loss was a crushing disappointment for many reasons, but the season must still be regarded as a success. If someone had told me in 1991 that the bad news was that we wouldn't win the conference title but we would still humiliate the Skunk Bears and go to a great bowl game, I would not have dared to complain.

We cannot afford to get arrogant or feel entitled. Even with the loss, we never had it so good.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING: This year as always I am chiefly thankful for Family, Faith and Freedom. It has not been the easiest year for all three, but I am still grateful for what I have - and for your attention, dear readers.

This is the 10th Thanksgiving for this blog and despite our erratic posting, you keep coming back and even comment from time to time. It is very much appreciated.

September 23, 2013

I'd meant to mention this earlier, but wanted to see how it worked first.

Hitherto, the Posse has had an open comments policy. However, we are getting inundated with spam. Since it is hard enough for us to find the time to post in the first place, spending precious time deleting the dozens of auto-generated crap that infests the site is simply out of the question.

Thus we are now moderating comments. If you leave a comment and it doesn't appear, don't worry - it's in the system and if it is not spam, we will post it. Hopefully the current wave will subside and we will be able to open things up, but right now we're getting 20+ of these things per day, which means if we are away for a day or two, they really add up.

Since all these things are run by 'bot, my assumption is that once they don't see any of their garbage appearing, they'll move on and leave us alone for a while. If they don't, at least we won't continue being a honey pot for scam artists.

January 01, 2013

This year the Posse will turn 9 - something that is kind of amazing when one thinks back to what the blogsphere and the internet looked like in 2004.

To recognize this anniversary - which won't take place for three more months - we will be revising and updating the site. Discussions are still ongoing, but the general thought is to go with fewer, longer posts filled with the kind of information that is simply not available elsewhere.

Everyone has an opinion, but not everyone has facts, and the most popular posts on this blog are those that deal with facts.

To that end, posting will become a little more rare, but more substantive. At least that is the plan.

So stick with us as begin these updates and of course have a Happy New Year.

December 25, 2012

My co-blogger has already extended Christmas greetings to our readers and I have little to add, save to note that one of the greatest blessings in life is to surround oneself with loved ones.

I have family in town this week and fully intend to avoid any and all mention of current events - our news intake will be entirely sports-based. This is as it should be.

Tomorrow the news cycle will start cranking again and people will once more take to the stores and airwaves to argue this policy or that, but today it is far better to listen to the old carols and focus on faith friends and family.

December 07, 2012

It appears that my last post was on Nov. 11. Wow. That's quite a break.

I hadn't intended to be away from the blog for that long, but after a grueling work schedule for the last three months, I needed to lower my operational tempo.

That and the news is just too depressing.

I burned out on serious politics a couple of years ago, and my posts have increasingly focused on fun stuff - sports, movies and hobbies. However, the absolute debacle that is the Big Ten football season seriously sapped my enthusiasm for sports blogging.

So I took some time off. I stopped reading political news and even avoided the in-depth sports reports. Instead, I spent more time with the family, playing games with the kids and tending to things around the house.

Funny thing: I ended up happier.

I've said it before, but for much of the left, politics is their life - it is all they think about, all they do. There is no line between the personal and the political because to them the personal is political. The coffee you drink, the car you drive, the shows you watch - all of this is an expression of political preference to them.

I marvel at how they can keep it up. Maybe this is why they are always so miserable and screaming about the latest outrage. I look at my liberal friends on facebook and they are always up in arms about something. That's no way to live.

I intend to reenter the area, particularly given the developments on both the state level (Michigan's Legislature passed Right to Work last night) and the media's pathetic attempt to resurrect gun control as an issue.

And of course there is the ongoing drama of the Big Ten's self-humiliation. I can't let that go without comment.

The reason I separated this post from those is that I felt our readers deserved to know where I went and also I thought it important to remind folks that there is more to life than the latest spin from the White House.